Binary Sunset: Legacy of the Jedi
by princess-of-the-sandcastle
Summary: Ten years after the fall of the Sith on Exegol, Jedi Masters Rey and Ben Skywalker train the next generation at the Restored Jedi Academy on Yavin 4. Reylo, TROS fix-it fic epilogue fic; Jedi Finn; IN PROGRESS
1. Prologue

_Hi Readers:_

_Here is my attempt at creating a TROS Fix-it Fic. While the fic is focused on 10 years after the events of TROS, this prologue shows an alternate ending for Rey and Ben and is the real beginning of our story. As ever, please enjoy, rate, and review._

_~Rae_

_P.S. Disclaimer: SW and all its characters belong to Lucasfilm/Disney, not me. Unfortunately._

**Prologue: Rebirth**

Rey struggled against the Emperor's will. The phantom senate gazed on with a cult fervor, devoted to the scene before them. The Emperor stopped and once more made his offer.

"Join me," Palpatine hissed. "Let me conform you to my power. Strike me down, so that my power will live in you...forever!"

Rey looked at the battlefield above her, the massacre of the Resistance in the atmosphere beyond her reach.

"You can end this war," he insisted. "The choice is yours...step into your power!"

Rey nodded, and the emperor assumed she would assent to his demands. But he was wrong; even in his cosmic power, he was blind to the dyadic bond. Rey raised the saber above her as if to strike, and the crowd roared in approval. Just when it looked like she would strike down the corpse-like Emperor, the Skywalker saber disappeared. Outside the throne room, the knight in black assumed its power and overtook the guards. In an instant, he was at Rey's side, ready to fight to the end.

"You failed, Kylo Ren!" Palpatine cackled. "You have lost the throne...it's too late."

The Emperor's words had no power against him. His attention was on Rey, waiting for her to lead.

"Take my hand," Rey said. Ben Solo did so. Together, they got in a defensive stance, lightsabers crossed in front of them, never letting go of each other's hand.

"No!" Palpatine thundered as the dyad united against him. Blue force lightning crackled from his fingertips and shot toward Rey and Ben. But it was impossible for him to reach them: a Force shield surrounded them. The Emperor raged as his lightning reflected off the shield of their bond. Rage became agony as the current surged back toward himself.

"Impossible!" Palpatine cried. "You can't destroy me!"

Rey and Ben stood, brilliantly white, transfigured. Their shield surrounded them, emanated from within themselves.

"You have destroyed yourself," they commanded, speaking in one voice together.

The Emperor forced a final, futile attack in their direction but it was useless. In a resplendent flash of light, Palpatine was incinerated. After decades of sinister scheming and manipulation, he was reduced to no more than mere ash and dust. What was left of him blew away in the cavern's cold, unforgiving wind. At last, the Emperor was deposed, and the legions phantom senators evaporated into the mist.

Rey and Ben fell to the ground in exhaustion. The Force bubble around them broke, but they held fast to each other. The dyad was united at last: two souls as one, two hearts pounding in synchrony.

"Ben," Rey said, her eyes brimming, her skin soaked with perspiration.

"Rey," he returned, pulling her closer as a smile broke out across his face.

They kissed for the first time, knowing that their bond had given them both a real home, a purpose, a destiny. When they finally broke apart, the skies above were filled with cries of victory. The First Order was destroyed, once and for all.

The voices of Jedi past echoed through the Force.

"Well done," Luke said. "The last of the Sith are gone."

"Brought balance to the Force, you have," Yoda continued.

"Restored our legacy," Anakin said.

"Our ever and only hope," Obi-Wan said.

The voices of all the Jedi surrounded them, giving them the strength to stand.

"Ben, my son...I knew you would come home," Leia said.

"Save the Jedi," the voices echoed. "Restore the Order. Establish peace in the galaxy. We will guide you on your way."

The atmosphere above cleared as the resistance fighters began their return journey to the jungle moon from whence they came. The fleet of imperial battleships sank deep into Exegol's fog, never to be resurrected. The resistance had emerged victorious. The war was over. Across the galaxy, worlds rejoiced at the news broke. There was a celebration in every star system as oppressed planets threw off the last of their imperial shackles.

As the dust settled, one lone X-wing rose above the rubble of the Sith planet.

"I knew you would come back," Rey said as the ship left the atmosphere. "I knew that you were strong enough."

"It was you. You brought me home," Ben said, without hesitation, as they left the dark planet behind. "I love you."

"I know," Rey replied. Ben grinned. For the first time in nearly a century, the Force was in balance. For the first time in their young lives. The scavenger and the last Skywalker knew happiness.

Together, Rey and Ben looked forward toward the stars, their course set for a desert planet in the Outer Rim. The future was theirs for the taking. Like binary stars, their bond was eternal.

###

The twin suns of Tatooine burned in the sunset sky.

"There's been no one in so long," the elderly widow said, surveying the intriguing couple in their white robes and brown cloaks.

"Who are you?" she inquired directly.

"We are…" Ben began. He glanced at Rey, who nodded supportively. Then, he proudly turned to the elderly woman and said:

"We are the Skywalkers."


	2. Chapter 1

_AN: So begins the main segment of the story. I wanted to imagine what it would be like if Ben and Rey opened a Jedi Academy after the war as Luke had done after the fall of the Empire. Please enjoy and don't forget to rate and review!_

_Disclaimer: Star Wars doesn't belong to me. Otherwise, TROS would have ended MUCH DIFFERENTLY! __(╯_ರ ರ_）╯︵ ┻━┻ __#bensololives *rant over*_

_~Rae_

Chapter I: The Jedi Academy

The Corellian freighter was decades past shiny and new, and it rattled when it touched down on the mossy jungle floor of Yavin 4. Despite its outward appearance, it was a ship that was built to last and served its current stewards well. The clearing where the ship landed was surrounded on three sides by dense tropical foliage; to the north of the landing pad, a path that threaded through the dense purple-barked trees. It was nearly dusk, and the balmy air was filled with the sound of insects and birds calling.

The landing ramp descended from the ship. A dark-skinned man in robes and a brown cloak emerged first, leading several children behind him.

"Welcome to your new home," the Jedi Knight said as he motioned toward the jungle. He looked back at the children. This time, he had found four new younglings for training: a shy Pau'an boy, a pair of Twi'lek sisters, and an excitable Devaronian boy who couldn't have been older than 4 years old.

Speaking into a handheld commlink, the Jedi said, "You can send the transport out for us! There's five of us, plus the droid."

An orange astromech droid rolled around and chirped excitedly. This made the Pau'an boy giggle, and inch closer to pat the droid's dome. The droid beeped happily again at the attention.

"Roger that," a female voice replied. "Welcome back, Finn."

"Thanks, Rose," the Jedi replied. "It's great to be home."

In minutes, the transport arrived, a wagon-like speeder that lumbered steadily over the path. It came to a stop in front of them, piloted by a blonde driver accompanied by a golden protocol droid.

"Master Finn! I am overjoyed to see you again, sir," the droid said.

"Hey, Threepio," Finn said. He waved at the driver. "Hello, Kaydel. Students, this is Kaydel Ko Connix, a lieutenant in the Resistance."

"Are you a Jedi?" the older Twi'lek sister asked, her orange head-tails twitching.

"No, I'm not," Kaydel laughed. "I'm just the operations manager here."

"She's being humble," Finn explained. "She's in charge of all our communications and supplies. Without Lt. Connix, you'd all be without meals or a way of phoning home."

"I'm just doing my part," Kaydel said with a smile as she lowered a ramp on the speeder. "All aboard!"

The Twi'lek sisters and the Devaronian boy clambered up the ramp and into their seats. The Pau'an boy hesitated, clinging to the astromech droid.

"Bee-bee-ate, why don't you show him the way up?" Kaydel said gently. The droid did a lap around the boy, which made the boy giggle again. Then, BB-8 rolled up the ramp. The boy followed him, and at last, everyone was on board.

"The terrain's a little rugged, so hold on tight," Kaydel warned playfully. The children fidgeted excitedly, except for the Pau'an boy, who clung tightly to BB-8. Finn chuckled.

"Don't worry, kiddo - we are all safe here."

Finn and Kaydel shared a poignant smile, remembering everything that they had been through in the rebellion. Even a decade later, some wounds would never heal. Still, they were glad - glad that their sacrifices had helped to give these children, born after the war, the luxury of peace.

One bumpy ride through the jungle later, the speeder-wagon emerged from the ferny underbrush into a wide clearing. At the center of the field was a large, colorful adobe temple, with sloped sides like a pyramid. The temple's flat roof was bedecked with flags that fluttered in the breeze, representing the homeworlds from whence the students came. The second level of the temple had columns and arches all along the walls, and below, a wide plaza was full of students playing in the last hour before sunset.

"Okay, kids," Finn said as the speeder-wagon slowed to a stop next to the plaza. "You can play here with the rest of the students. We will have our evening meal soon, and, uh, you'll get to introduce yourselves, but for the meantime - Hey, don't touch that!"

The younger twi-lek sister, who was reaching out to touch Finn's lightsaber, immediately yanked her hand back and crossed her arms, pouting.

"You'll get to see lots of these soon enough," Finn said, softening his tone. "When you're ready, you'll even make one of your own. Anyways, go ahead and go play, and I'll see you all at dinner."

With that, they all disembarked from the speeder. Finn and Kaydel started walking toward the temple, followed by BB-8 and C-3P0.

"Where are you going, Teacher?" the younger Twi-lek said.

"We need to check in with the directors," Finn replied.

"The Skywalkers," the older sister said reverently.

With that, the Jedi and Lt. Connix crossed the recreation yard and disappeared into the temple. The children were left alone. Immediately, the Devaronian boy jumped into the ballgame that some of the other younglings were playing. The Twi'lek sisters saw another group of girls playing with a long skipping rope. The Pau'an boy looked around fretfully, then sat down where he was an started to cry. With BB-8 gone, he didn't have anyone...more than anything, he wished he was back home with his mother.

A few moments later, the boy's hypersensitive ears picked up the sound of gravel crunching as someone approached. Whoever it was sat next to him on the ground.

"Hello there," a friendly voice said. "Are you okay?"

The little boy sniffed and peeked out from under his arm. A teenager with light skin and dark eyes was smiling at him. The boy said nothing.

"Quiet type, huh? That's okay. Sometimes it's tough on the first day. What's your name?"

More silence, although the crying had stopped.

"I'll go first, then. My name is Temiri Blagg. I've been here at the Academy for...well, since just after the war ended. You probably weren't even born yet. They came and got me from Canto Bight. Master Finn showed up and got me out of the stables and brought me here. I've been training to be a Jedi ever since. I was your age when they took me."

The boy was curious, and pointed at the lightsaber on Temiri's belt.

"Yeah, that's my lightsaber. I made it when I had been training for a year...we take a trip to Dantooine, as a school. You'll do that too, soon enough."

A gong rang out from within the temple.

"That's the dinner bell!" Temiri said, jumping up to his feet. He held his hand out. "You coming? Don't want to be late, or all the good food will be gone...today is Stew Day."

The boy took Temiri's hand and they started walking towards the temple.

"Silban Zlohum," the boy said quietly.

"What?"

"My name is Silban Zlohum."

"There we go!" Temiri said, laughing. "It's nice to meet you."

Together, they entered the Academy. Silban was still homesick, but when he got to sit with Temiri and his other friends, he felt a little better. He couldn't help but be excited for dinner...especially because it meant meeting the Skywalkers.


	3. Chapter 2

_A/N: Hi all! Sorry about the long wait since the last update. I am graduating from college in a few months and this semester has been crazy, but I'm hoping to be more regular. Don't forget to rate and review! _

_May the force be with you!_

_~Rae_

**Chapter 2: The Council**

Within the temple, the raucous din of the recreation yard faded. In the inner sanctum, the halls were quiet, kept cool by the earthen adobe walls. Finn and Kaydel had met up with Rose near the entryway. After they made their greetings, they walked together down the long corridor that led to the council room.

The council room was small and open, with a skylight window that let in the dusky twilight. Finn, Kaydel, and Rose chatted and joked as they approached the door, but stopped at the sound of the voices within.

"I just think it's better for them not to be involved," a man's voice asserted.

"We can't hide here forever," a woman responded gently. "The galaxy needs to see what we've done here, to see the Balance...the reconstruction needs us. Your mother would have wanted-"

"Don't-" the man began, cutting himself off. "Don't talk about my mother."

"Okay then," the woman responded huffily. "I want to be involved. I want to help. There is so much we could do to help-"

"You think I don't care about the Reconstruction?" the man said, anger entering his voice. "I do! That's why - that's why we aren't involved. It's better that we stay here."

Finn, Rose, and Kaydel glanced at each other uncomfortably, not wanting to interrupt. The message they had to share was important, but their friends had often had this argument before, and interrupting might make it worse.

"It's better for everyone that we stay here," the man said definitively, in an attempt to end the conversation.

A moment of silence passed. Finn thought about opening the door, but they started talking again.

"You're afraid," the woman said. "You're afraid that they won't trust you, that they'll look at you and only see the past."

"Don't read my- get out of my head!"

"I'm not reading your thoughts," she said, laughing. "I just know you."

"I know." His voice softened, and he laughed too.

Finn took the opportunity to knock on the door before entering the room. Pushing the door open, the three former rebels entered the council room. Ben and Rey Skywalker were sitting together on a chaise. When Rey saw Finn, she jumped up and hugged him tightly.

"Finn!" she said warmly. "Welcome back!"

"Thanks," Finn replied.

"How was your trip?"

"Great, actually," Finn replied excitedly. "I have four new students for the Academy."

"That's good," Ben said. "The more, the better."

"Kaydel, do you have any news from the Interplanetary Union?" Rey asked.

"Yes, actually," Kaydel said. "I received a transmission from the Union's diplomatic consulate. They are planning on sending several delegates here to Yavin IV from the aligned systems, including General Dameron."

"Poe is coming?" Finn and Rey said in unison, looking excited.

"Who authorized this visit?" Ben asked, his eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"It's time, Ben," Rey said. "I told Kaydel to reach out to them. I figured if some of them came here, to see the Academy, they would get to see what we have been doing-"

"I didn't agree to this," Ben said.

"I know. That's why I didn't ask you," Rey said. "It's been ten years. If not now, then when?"

Ben fell silent, and Rey took his silence for agreement.

"It's been so long," Rey said. "I haven't seen Poe since-"

"Since before Exegol," Ben said.

No one except for Ben and Rey themselves knew exactly what had happened on Exegol. Finn knew that it had something to do with their bond in the Force, but at the time, it wasn't his place to ask. Finn and Rey had always been close, but there were some things that she kept to herself. After the Resistance had secured their victory, Ben and Rey had both disappeared. It was almost a year before they returned. The Resistance had begun the long process of rebuilding democracy in the galaxy. When they finally returned, both of them were changed. Some, like Finn and the others who had come with them to Yavin IV, we're able to accept when Rey told them that Ben had overcome his past. Others, like General Poe Dameron, didn't believe that it was possible, that Kylo Ren was dead.

"He said he'd never come," Rose said.

"Something must have changed his mind," Finn replied.

Kaydel and Rey continued discussing the details of the transmission, but the rest of them sat wondering at the news. The room was cast in a soft orange glow from the sunset coming through the skylight.

Suddenly, the door swung open.

"Get back here! Good heavens! You are not permitted to enter the council room," C-3P0's voice called from the hallway to no avail. Two kids bounded into the room, running towards Finn. Not missing a beat, Finn caught them both up into a hug.

"Uncle Finn, you're home!" the little boy said.

"We missed you," the little girl added.

"Pax. Hope," Rey said sternly. "What have I told you about coming in here during council meetings?"

"I warned them, Lady Rey. I repeated your expectations clearly, but they ignored me," C-3P0 complained, miffed.

The twins ignored their mother's gaze, clinging to Finn. The little girl looked over at her father.

"Daddy, we wanted to see Uncle Finn," Hope said, pouting. The girl's black hair had at one point been styled into two buns on either side of her head but through a day's worth of play, most of her curls had broken free. She squirmed down from Finn's arms and bounded over to Ben's side. "We just wanted to say hi, because we missed him."

Ben took Hope's little hand in his own.

"We are all glad Uncle Finn is home," Ben said, smiling at Finn. Looking down at Hope, he continued, "But you need to apologize to your mother."

"Sorry, Mommy," Hope said petulantly.

"Both of you," Ben said, eyeing Pax.

"Sorry, Mommy," Pax echoed.

Rey's expression softened, and she smiled at them. "Come along, it's dinnertime. You two can sit next to Uncle Finn during dinner. I'm sure he has lots to tell you about his trip."

With that, Hope giggled and Pax shouted, "Float me!" to which Finn laughed and said, "If you insist…"

Using the Force to hover the twins a few feet off the ground, he grinned and immediately flipped them upside down.

"Hey!" Pax shouted, squirming, his brown hair blocking his view.. "Let us go!"

The adults laughed as Finn lowered the twins to the ground.

"Come on, then," he said. "There's some new students that I'd like you to meet."

The group left the room and started walking towards the dining hall. As the twins dragged Finn along and Rose and Kaydel discussed the upcoming delegations, Rey and Ben hung back.

"I bet it was her idea to break the rule," Rey said. "She just does what she wants without thinking about the consequences."

"She gets it from her mother," Ben quipped, taking his wife's hand.

"I had to give the delegation a chance to see what we've been doing. They won't be here for long, but they have a right to know," Rey explained. "I'm sorry I went behind your back. But I did what I had to."

"I know," Ben said. He reached back and closed the door on the council room door. The matter was closed, for the time being. Rey leaned into him as they walked, watching their children pull Finn toward the dining hall. Suddenly, she stopped walking and pulled Ben into a quick kiss.

"What was that for?" he asked.

"For all of this," she said, motioning to their friends, and their children. "For us. For them. For…"

"For family," he replied.

"For family," she repeated, and kissed him again. They had everything they needed.


End file.
